Geometry Wars: Galaxies

"Super Deluxe Astroids Advanced"

With the Virtual Console, the Wii has the potential to reclaim lost Nintendo and Super Nintendo fans. It has a solid back catalogue of old games, but what about new, non-casual games for this audience? For them, look no further than Geometry Wars Galaxies.

Geometry Wars Galaxies is incredible Retro, not just in it's visual presentation, but in it's gameplay. I like to think of it as Super Deluxe Astroids Advanced. The game essentially plays like the old arcade Astroids game. You control a basic, polygonal ship blasting basic, polygonal shapes. Unlike Astroids, the targets aren't large mindless blobs, but an assortment of space aliens in the form of simple shapes and colors, each with their own unique behavior. For some unexplained reason these shapes want you dead, and they'll come at you wave after wave until you are dead. Literally. Enemies will keep re-spawning until they've taken every last life. Theoretically the game could go on forever, but it's not likely that you'll last that long. The screen can get so cluttered with enemies that it becomes nearly impossible to escape. Unless you can strategically maneuver through tiny openings and blast your way through the rest. If the battle becomes too chaotic, there is a small supply of bombs at your disposal. Bombs destroy everything on the screen, but more enemies will quickly spring up. This can be indispensable, if you can react quickly enough. While the enemies are all bent on your destruction, they aren't completely mindless. Some will dodge bullets, requiring them to be pinned up against a wall to be defeated. Some will explode into smaller parts. Some have an alternating “heat seeking” like ability. And still some are just dang fast. There are also gravity wells and wormholes that will suck up anything close to them, and if left too long will blow up into a shower of tiny protons that will come at you at incredible speeds. These are the basic enemies, but the game still throws out a few surprises in later levels.

Speaking of levels, Galaxies has a staggering amount of stages to choose from. There are 10 galaxies with several planets in each that adds up to a whopping 64 levels. Variance between the levels can be pretty slim at times though, but with 64 levels, there is quite a selection. The game even comes with a version of Retro Evolved that can be played on the Wii, or downloaded to a DS and taken on the road. There's plenty offered in Galaxies, and quite a bit of time can be spent just opening new planets. Then it's a matter of how dedicated you are at getting gold medals in each stage and setting ridiculously high scores to show off over the Nintendo Wifi Connection.

With so much being offered, Galaxies sounds like a steal. Unfortunately it really isn't. It's too simple to warrant a $40 purchase. Especially when the Xbox Live download is only $5. At $20, Galaxies would be an incredible bargain. Or even if they had dumbed it down a bit and waited to release it as a downloadable Wii Ware game. As it stands, the game just doesn't feel like a full blown $40 experience. Especially if you don't have a classic controller and can't stand the IR controls.

Because the classic controller has such limited original Wii game support and cannot be used with Gamecube games, it isn't the best value for the common gamer. Most Wii owners probably haven't dropped the cash for one yet. But don't worry, Galaxies IR controls aren't as bad as they've been cracked up to be. For those that have played Retro Evolved on Xbox, you will probably be much more comfortable with the classic controller. For the rest of us, IR works very well after a fairly steep learning curve. The nunchuck analog stick controls the ship movements while pointing adjusts where the ship shoots. A small icon shows where the pointer is actually pointed with a laser site connecting it to the ship. It takes a long time to get used to, but some may ultimately prefer it to the dual analog setup of the classic controller.

Where IR controls fail is in the multiplayer modes. The screen zooms and pans to accommodate two ships, which completely throws off the aim established in the single player mode. Multiplayer with IR is essentially unplayable. What would have been a fun addition to the game just ends up being frustrating. It still could be a lot of fun with two classic controllers, but if you all you've got are Wii remotes and nunchucks, don't even bother.

Closing Comments
Geometry wars galaxies is a fun, but perhaps too simple package. The $40 price tag is too steep for this type of title. $20 is the real sweet spot, watch for it then. Of course, if you are a huge Retro Evolved fan, then you may want to spring for the title now. Despite many complaints from sources both professional and unprofessional, the IR control does work, just not in multiplayer. It all depends on what control scheme you start and learn with.

Score: 7/10

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 12/03/07

Game Release: Geometry Wars: Galaxies (US, 11/20/07)